Retractor used to assist cuff implantation, tissue repositioning and other applications

ABSTRACT

A retractor is designed to assist in cuff implantation procedure. It has a flat non-cutting retracting end at the distal. Its function is to isolate tissue of interest, to make access, and to retract tissue for cuff placement and removal while protecting critical tissue at the surgical site. A variation of this retractor can accept removable ends and tips from various instruments. This variation can be utilized in other applications such as rehabilitation or fine motor trainings of hands and prosthesis.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The retractor described in this patent has a function in assisting cuff placement during surgical implantation. The cuffs are used to enclose internal organ or tissue of interest, and the applications installed at the inner surface of the cuffs can give electrical stimulations or exert therapeutic effects to the surrounded tissue. This retractor offers control and precision to the users in utilizing this instrument to retract and make access while protecting nearby soft tissue and structures at the surgical site. A variation of this retractor has internal housings to accept ends and tips from various instruments for use in other applications.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

When performing surgical implantation using cuffs, there are many concerns and disadvantages in using prior art retractors to clean out surrounding connective tissue, to isolate tissue of interest, and to facilitate the placement and removal of the cuff. The purposes of this patent are to provide a surgical instrument to assist and facilitate cuff placement and removal, to retract and protect soft tissue without damages to surrounding organs, muscles, nerves and veins, to avoid the need of using extra retractors during cuff placement and removal, to give better access for surgical procedures by improving visualization at the surgical site. No prior art retractors are able to offer as many degrees of freedom this present retractor offers. With six degrees of freedom added to the design of this retractor, it improves the effectiveness of this surgical instrument, and provides a comfort grip and protection to its users.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This patent relates to a retractor to assist in cuff placement around tubular body tissue such as nerves, veins, muscles, intestines, fallopian tubes and etc. The retractor can also be used in nerve repositioning and in various surgical procedures to hold back soft tissue and make access. A variation of this retractor can assume purposes in prosthesis trainings, rehabilitation, and other applications.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows the dimension and four segments of the present retractor. W: handle X: main shaft Y: integral supporting shaft Z: retracting end

FIG. 2 is the side elevational view of the present retractor.

FIG. 3 This is the side elevational view of the present retractor having its lowest points H and F at the lower surfaces of the handle and the supporting shaft passing a horizontal plane A. Two tangent lines T1 and T2 are shown at the curved surface of the retracting tip along with the angles R1 and R2 related to plane A. Two tangent lines T3 and T4 are shown at the lower surface of the handle along with the angles S1 and S2 related to the same plane A.

FIG. 4I and J show the fragmentary plan view of the retracting end.

FIG. 4K through O, shows the top plan view, and segments of the present retractor.

FIG. 5 is a variation of the present retractor with an internal housing incorporated at the integral part of the supporting shaft. This internal housing is able to accept ends from various instruments. Ends and tips can either be made of medical-grade stainless steel or biocompatible rigid disposable materials.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This patent describes a surgical retractor used to make access, to hold back and protect soft tissue, and to avoid damages to the adjacent vital organ and structures. This retractor is designed to assist in cuff placement during implantation and cuff removal due to cuff implant failure. FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are the diagrams of the retractor described in this patent. The retractor is comprised of four segments, a rounded passive grip handle, and a main shaft with 2 finger rests, an integral supporting shaft, and a retracting end at the distal. The most preferred length U of the retractor is 15 cm. The preferred diameter of the handle W is between 12 mm and 16 mm, and the preferred diameter of the main shaft X is between 9 mm and 12 mm. The integral supporting shaft Y extends out of the main shaft and gradually transition to a more flatten profile where the retracting end Z of the retractor curves upward from this point.

The rounded handle fits passively between the thumb and the index finger. The advantage of this handle is that it does not require strength to hold and stabilize, and thus controlling the movement of the retracting end becomes easier for its users. The main shaft is extended from the handle in an upward direction. It is constructed as three degrees of freedom bend. In the main shaft, there are 2 finger rests C and G shown in FIG. 2. C is located on the upper surface of the shaft for the index finger to rest, and G is situated at the lower surface of the shaft for the side of the middle finger to support. Extended out of the main shaft is the integral supporting shaft that is curved out in a slightly downward direction. The upward extension of the main shaft and the downward extension of the supporting shaft add two degrees of freedom to the retractor. At the end of the supporting shaft is the retracting end which is a flat shape, slightly up curved and non-cutting tip. The retracting end adds to the retractor its last degree of freedom. There is no longitudinal axis for this retractor. However, the points H and F at the lower surface of the handle and the lower surface of the supporting shaft pass through a same horizontal plane A.

In reference to FIG. 3, the present retractor has points H and F passing through the horizontal plane A. Two tangent lines T1 and T2 can be drawn at the curved surface of the retracting end near point F, the lowest point of the supporting shaft from the side elevational view. R1 is the angle between T1 and plane A, and R2 is the angle between T2 and plane A. The preferred angle R1 is between 20 and 40 degrees, and the preferred angle R2 is between 40 and 60 degrees. Two tangent lines T3 and T4 can be drawn at the convex surface of the handle near point H, the lowest point of the handle from the side elevational view. S1 is the angle between T3 and plane A, and S2 is the angle between T4 and plane A. The preferred angle S1 is between 10 and 30 degrees, and the preferred angle S2 is between 40 and 60 degrees.

The fragmentary plan view of the retracting end and the top plan view of the present retractor are shown in FIG. 4. Top view of the retracting end has a flat shape and a non-cutting tip. The side view of the retracting end shows a slightly curved and convex non-cutting end. There are neither sharp edges nor corners at this retracting end. Top plan view of the retractor gives a general illustration of the retractor and parts. The retractor is made as one single unit.

A variation of this retractor is shown in FIG. 5. This variation is made having retractor parts and their shape and size the same as described but having a removable end. Instead of a single unit instrument, this variation of the present retractor has an internal housing at the supporting shaft prepared to accept ends from various instruments, surgical and non-surgical. All parts of this retractor are made of medical-grade stainless steel that is sufficiently rigid to avoid deformation of the instrument during use over period of time. Replacement ends are made available of either medical-grade stainless steel or biocompatible rigid disposable materials.

This retractor offers surgeons a more comfortable grip in handling and controlling this instrument. The present retractor has a range of angle specified at both ends, and six degrees of freedom in its design from the handle to the retracting end. The advantages of this design are to enable access at the surgical site to retract and stabilize specific tissue without damaging adjacent tissue or organs, and to provide its users improved precision in utilizing this retractor. The variation of this retractor shown in FIG. 5 has the advantage of accepting various ends and tips which makes this version of the variation suitable for both right handed and left handed users.

REFERENCES CITED

U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS 5,487,756 December 1994 Kallesoe et al. 6,461,368 B2 October 2002 Fogarty et al. 

1. A retractor and a variation used to assist in cuff implantation, cuff removal, retracting soft tissue, nerve repositioning and other applications are comprised of the following segments. (a) A passive grip handle that is rounded and comfortably to fit in the hands of the user. Said handle rests in between the thumb and the index finger to secure and stabilize the retractor. The shape of the handle can be round but not limited to. (b) A main shaft extends upwardly from said handle and is consisted of a shape of three degrees of freedom bend. Said main shaft has two finger rests. One is on the upper surface of said main shaft for the index finger to rest, and the other is at the lower surface of said shaft for the middle finger to give support. (c) An integral supporting shaft extending downwardly from said main shaft and gradually transition to a more flatten and narrow profile to improve visualization and to yield access at the surgical site. (d) An integral supporting shaft of the variation has the same profile as in claim 1(c) and an internal housing at the distal end to accept ends and tips from various instruments. (e) A retracting end extends gentle upward from the distal end of said supporting shaft. Said retracting end is convex and curves upwardly form the side elevational view. It is a non-cutting end and it has a flat shape from the top plan view. (f) A retracting end of said variation is removable and has the shape and profile as in claim 1(e). It has additional adapting connections at the proximal end to fit in the internal housing of said supporting shaft.
 2. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said retractor is made of a passive grip handle, a main shaft, an integral supporting shaft, and a retracting end. Said retractor is one single unit without adapting or connecting parts.
 3. A variation of said retractor according to claim 1, wherein said variation is made of two units. One unit is consisted of a passive grip handle, a main shaft, and an integral supporting shaft with an internal housing to accept various ends and tips. The other unit is said removable retracting end with adapting parts at the proximal end which fits inside said internal housing of said integral supporting shaft.
 4. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said two tangent lines T3 and T4 can be drawn from the convex surface of said handle. By said tangent lines T3 and T4 and a horizontal plane A passing the lower surface of said handle and the lower surface of said supporting shaft, two angles S1 and S2 are formed to specify the curvature of said convex surface for said handle.
 5. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said angle S1 is between 10 and 30 degrees, and said angle S2 is between 40 and 60 degrees. S1 and S2 are specified, but not limited to.
 6. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said two tangent lines T1 and T2 can be drawn from the lower surface of said retracting end. By said tangent lines T1 and T2 and a horizontal plane A passing the lower surface of said handle and the lower surface of said supporting shaft, two angles R1 and R2 are formed to specify the curvature of said retracting end.
 7. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said angle R1 is between 20 and 40 degrees, and said angle R2 is between 40 and 60 degrees. R1 and R2 are specified, but not limited to.
 8. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said profile of said retractor has six degrees of freedom in its design, but not limited to.
 9. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said profile of said variation without said retracting end has a minimum of three degrees of freedom in its design, but not limited to.
 10. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said retractor has a minimum length of 12 cm, but not limited to. Said retractor has a preferred length of 15 cm.
 11. A retractor according to claim 1, wherein said variation of said retractor has a minimum length of 12 cm, but not limited to. Said preferred length of said retractor is adjusted according to said applications.
 12. A retractor according to claim 1 and said variation according to claim 1, wherein said handle has a preferred diameter between 12 mm and 16 mm. Said diameters are not limited to, and adjusted accordingly for said applications.
 13. A retractor according to claim 1 and said variation according to claim 1, wherein said main shaft has a preferred diameter between 9 mm and 12 mm. Said diameters are not limited to, and adjusted accordingly for said applications.
 14. A retractors handle according to claim 1, wherein said handle is rounded to fit in the hands of the user. The rounded shape could be symmetrical, asymmetrical, round, ellipse, parabolic, hexagon, octagon or other shapes that fits comfortably in the ventral aspect of the hand to support the dynamic movements of fingers and thumb.
 15. A retractor main shaft according to claim 1, wherein said main shaft is three degrees of freedom bend, and said shape of the main shaft could be symmetrical, asymmetrical, round, ellipse, parabolic, hexagon, octagon or other shapes that fits comfortably in the ventral aspect of the hand to support the curvatures and dynamic movements of fingers and thumb.
 16. A variation according to claim 3 without said retracting end, wherein said variation can adapt different ends and tips to use in prosthesis and non-prosthesis trainings of fine motor movements and applications of other purposes. 